Johnny Cash’s Folsom Prison Blues, of course.
“I shot a man in Reno
just to watch him die.”
Hometown: Jacksonville, FL
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"...and people down in Florida can't be still when old Lynyrd Skynyrd's pickin' down in Jacksonville..." from "The South's Gonna Do It" by Charlie Daniels. -
any song by the aforementioned Lynyrd Skynyrd. Or Pat Boone.
VCNJ~
Greensboro, and a lot of NC for that reason, has a huge hardcore/scene scene. Bands come here often, or start here, and we have a lot of small town hardcore groups/gangs/possees (like Trinity Killer Kids or something). Probably the most well known band to come out of here would probably be Taking Back Sunday. Coupled with that, and that their most well known song is probably “There’s No I in Team” or “You’re So Last Summer”, one of those may have to work.
Either that, or one of the couple songs refering to NC as a whole, or something by John Denver. Not real rock, though, but it is as close as we can get to the music scene.
Based on the way the state has been run over the decades, I’d have to go with Leavin’ Louisiana in the Broad Daylight. Not for the lyrics per se, but I think the title says it all.
(Hey, I love my home state, but you gotta admit it’s pretty much been run into the ground by one politician after another.)
For my hometown of Austin, I’d have to say anything by Stevie Ray Vaughan…
As far as I know, there’s two “big” songs that mention Austin by name: Little Texas’ “Amy’s Back In Austin” and Huey Lewis and the News’ “Heart of Rock 'N Roll.” We used to get excited when he sang, “in Austin…”
For the state, I’d nominate Lyle Lovett’s “(That’s Right) You’re Not From Texas.”
I grew up near the towns of Witney, in Oxfordshire, and Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk (in the UK). I’d have to claim Radiohead (Oxford) and The Darkness (Lowestoft) as the local bands of my youth, I s’pose.
“Last Dance with Mary Jane,” by Tom Petty, or pretty much anything by John Mellencamp.
I was going to say Dirty Water, which Boston sems to wear with ironic pride.
As for where I am now, in terms of major metropolitan area, it used to be “I Love LA” by Randy Newman, but I get the feeling that “All I Wanna Do” by Sheryl Crow has surpassed it in the hearts of the people in recent years.
As for the actual town I live in now, Downey California, I would bet they’d pick something from a favorite son or daughter. I would bet they would pick “Top of the World” by the Carpenters (who grew up here), but I would prefer “Enter Sandman” by Metallica (James Hetfield is from Downey also). Weird Al was apparently born here as well, but grew up in Lynwood, so I don’t think they’d go with him.
Archetypal song: “The Biggest Ball of Twine in Minnesota” by Weird Al.
Famous musicians: Bob Dylan, and that Prince fellow.
Really? I thought Taking Back Sunday were from Amityville, NY?
Californication - Red Hot Chili Peppers
my hometown is in Nashville. I’m sure there are a million…mostly country i’m sure. I know there is a dixie chicks song, a ben harper song, a david meade song, umm theres that Arrested Development hip hop song Tennessee, Rocky Top?
I live in Chicago now. I hear that Sweet home Chicago song alot around here. Its not really official but this past year the real Chicago song that comes to mind is the Don’t Stop Believing song that was used for the White Sox during the world series. Man they played that alot.
There is a good Spoon song Chicago at Night. And then of course the entire Sufjan Stevens album, come on feel the Illinoise which has the song Chicago on the album
Although it has nothing to do with music, the state of Idaho passed a special legislation commemorating Jared and Joshua Hess and their film Napoleon Dynamite, which was filmed in- and took place in- Idaho. Among the portions of the legislation was one commenting that the people who voted against the legislation were “freakin’ idiots.”
How about the glurgy “Austin” by Blake Shelton?
“Nashville” by Indigo Girls is a good one, but negative in that it talks about their music not being accepted in the traditional country vein.
Possibly, but I know that one of them, I think the lead singer, has a house here. His little brother also goes to HS around here, and many people I know know him. I’ve only met him a couple of times, myself.
Too many to cite. However, Lou Reed did do an entire album about us, and possibly the best of his career.
As for my home town (Cleveland), all I have to offer is this.
The Indigo Girls’ “Shame on You” mentions Gainesville:
http://www.lyricstime.com/indigo-girls-shame-on-you-lyrics.html
Exapno one of my favorite songs for Buffalo (I went to college there) is John Fogerty’s “Rock and Roll Girls”.
“Dirty Water” is a good choice for Boston proper but for Massachussetts in general it’s hard to beat the Modern Lovers “Roadrunner”.
I remember when the New Jersey legislature was discussing making this official (I’m not sure if they ever did), Joe Piscopo had a bit in his stand-up routine about how only Jersey would have a state song with the word “suicide” featured prominently.
Back in the Eighties, Seattle’s local comedy TV show Amost Live lead a campaign to get “Louie, Louie” declared the state song (their main reason, I think, was that Paul Revere and Raiders are from here and they recorded a version, though not the best-known one). Olympia, wisely, refused the full honor, but did make it the state rock song.
A lot of cities and states can claim Dr. Hook’s What a Way to Go, but Seattle gets mentioned in the first line.
God, do I have to even say it?! See Location
I hate that song.
Smashmouth needs to do a “local” song so we can all forget about Dionne’s wailing.
We never went through with it. But it has been the unofficial song for a few decades now. 
Seattle has more songs from it than about it, but there’s always Robyn Hitchcock’s number Viva! Sea-Tac:
Viva Seattle-Tacoma, viva viva Sea-Tac
Viva Seattle-Tacoma, viva viva Sea-Tac
Viva viva viva viva viva Sea-Tac
They’ve got the best computers and coffee and smack